Coffee vs Tea
by Lily-Kasumi
Summary: Reid bumps into a new friend at a cafe... litteraly.


**Hello everyone, my name is Lily Kasumi. This is my first story here on FF, and I am relatively pleased with it. This story is also the first of a series of one-shots/chapter fics called the Hand of Fate series, which is a ReidxOC story. Coffee vs. Tea was just a little scene that popped into my head and worked as a first time meeting for these two characters. (I have had wierder conversation in a coffee shop than this, trust me!) I hope you all enjoy it! P.S. There is a shout-out to a certain USA character... at the end.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds**

**Warnings: Swearing**

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><p><strong>Coffee vs. Tea<strong>

Abraham Lincold once said "If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee."

It was one of those days, the kind that fell right at the end of summer, but was not quite fall yet. The air was just cool enough for a casual sweater vest of coat, but only a handful of leaves had turned their colors. Special Agent Spencer Reid loved these kinds of mornings; it meant perfect weather for walking to work and stopping at his favorite cafe for a cup of coffee. Abby's was a small, local joint tucked away into the corner of a large building that it shared with an art gallery called Isis and a boutique that tailored high end fashion. The flashiness of these two stores over-powered the quaint brick coffee shop between them. Meaning, the shop was often quiet and lacked the air of commercialism that was so stifling everywhere else. Reid had discovered this place by complete accident, but, he'd enjoyed the atmosphere so much that he'd begun to frequent it. In fact, he was such a regular that the barista, a plump blonde woman by the name of Lisa, often had his order ready for him when he walked in the door: black coffee and a blueberry bagel.

Today was no different. Abby's was still mostly empty, save for the usual regulars and a couple new faces. Reid swept his eyes over the cafe, taking in the new and old customers. There was a small like in front of the register: three people. Lisa was manning the counter as usual, her long blonde hair pulled back into a braid, pale pink lipstick on lips that were pulled back into a smile. Two of the three people ahead of him were new to Abby's: a thoroughly harassed looking business man who was trying to seal what sounded like a settlement on his cell phone and order at the same time. An elderly woman who stood behind him Reid recognized as Ruby, one of the owner's from the boutique beside them, who stood out in her bright red pea coat. She called the shop her 'little secret'. And directly in front of him was a young woman that he did not recognize. Her hair was a soft brown and it hung loose down her back. She was wearing a gray sweater and jeans.

The line moved forward and the federal agent caught a whiff of something flowery drifting off of the woman in front of him. She ordered something and handed the barista a couple dollar bills, before walking away with an cup. Reid moved forward next and before he'd even opened his mouth Liza held out a bag and a steaming cup of his favorite liquid refreshment, "Had it started the minute you walked through the door."

"Thanks." He said, taking the bag and taking in an burning mouthful before he was able to help himself. Lowering the cup he licked his lips and turned to exit the cafe... and walked straight into the woman who had been ordering before him. Something hot slipped onto his sweater vest and he yelped, jumping back and pulling the soaked material away from his chest.

"Son of a bitch!" The federal agent looked over at the woman: the front of her argyle pattern sweater was stained with his drink. She held the clothing away from her with a few pinched fingers, while holding a dripping cup in her other hand, "Ugh..."

"I'm really sorry," Spencer began to babble, "I didn't see you there and..." He looked down at his clothes, "Well you spilt on me too. Are we even now?"

"How about you buy me another drink and I'll buy another one for you, then we're even?"

"Okay." Reid answered without truly thinking about it, and lifted his gaze from his ruined clothes to see that the mystery woman was all ready walking back towards the counter. Lisa looked like she could hardly contain her laughter, but kept a brave face and asked, "Uhh... what can I get you guys?"

"Green tea."

"Coffee."

The two stared at one another. "Tea?" Reid repeated, just as she replied, "Coffee?" With a light wrinkle of her nose. Spencer noted that her eyes were gray.

"Yeah, I like it." Spencer said, taking his fresh cup from Lisa, "What's wrong with it?"

The woman made a non commental noise and oured fresh hot water over the packet in her new cup. As the tea bag seeped in the hot water she turned to him and held out a hand, "My name's Rachel Lindell."

"Ah..." He hesitated for a moment before shaking her hand lightly, "Dr. Spencer Reid."

"Doctor?" She raised her eyebrows, looking a little impressed, "What did you study?"

"I actually have in Mathmatics, Chemistry and Engineering." He admitted shyly, which was met with a small whistle from Rachel as they walked to sit down at a table in the corner. It was only after they had taken their seats that he found this a little odd, starting conversations with people wasn't something he was good at. Then again, she started it.

"Wow, impressive doctor. Got any other credentials?" The comment wasn't snarky, it sounded sincered, so he replied, "BAs in psychology, sociology and I'm working on one in philosophy."

"I studied psychology. Finished my doctarite a month ago actually."

"Did you have a speciality?"

"Specialities. Clinical and criminal." Rachel said, then looked down at his drink as he stirred in a couple packets of sugar and took a long drink, "How can you stand that stuff?"

"How can you stand that?" Reid quipped, pointing to her own cup, "And you didn't even put any sugar in it.

"I _like_ tea, it's better for you anyway." The woman said, sipping at the herbal concoction. "Coffee has up to 130 milligrams of caffeine, the lowest amount in a cup of coffee is 72 milligrams, which is the largest amount found in black coffee. And, caffeine is connected to sleep problems and anxiety."

Was it a challenge? The federal agent couldn't help but smirk, maybe she wanted to show off some of her knowledge when she heard him introduce himself as 'doctor'.

"Actually," Reid said, stirring in another spoonful of sugar, "Coffee has been linked to lower rates in liver and colon cancer, while the FDA states that further testing is required to find if tea lowers rates for any cancer."

"The main antioxidant of green tea actually helps prevent cavities." Rachel countered, eyeing his cup, "I hope you don't like your teeth doctor."

"My teeth are in good condition, thank you very much." Spencer quipped, but found himself smiling all the same, "And coffee protects the brain against Parkinson's disease."

"Tea helps with Alzheimer's." Rachel said, then her lips twitched and they both were laughing. "We are arguing... over drinks...?" She gasped out between weak giggles.

"I guess we are..." He admitted, chuckling.

"Tell you what," Rachel mused, tucking a strand of dark brown hair behind one ear, revealing a simple silver hoop, "How about a compromise... the next time I get something to drink I try coffee? Would you be willing to try tea?"

"I suppose... Maybe it's gotten better since the last time I tried it." Reid said, taking another sip from his beloved caffeinated beverage.

"And maybe Lisa's coffee has gotten better." Rachel said; smiling as the barista called over with a faux annoyed, "I heard that!" The woman stood from her seat, Spencer raised an eyebrow, "You're leaving?"

"I'm running late for a meeting." Rachel admitted, a faint trace of red was creeping up around her cheeks, "I'm seriously late now because... I put off going so I could talk to you."

The agent felt himself growing a little hot that had nothing to do with the coffee in his stomach, "Oh..."

"You'll let me know how that tea tastes huh?" The woman said, winking at him and dropping a card on the table before sweeping out the door so quickly it was as though she vanished into thin air. Reid picked up the card; it was a simple business card, nothing flashy. The card had a white background with bold black text reading Rachel Liddell followed by a phone number below the name. He flipped it over and was surprised to see there was no company name on the card, but he didn't let it bother him. What mattered was that he had plans for tomorrow morning... even if it meant trying to drink tea. And Morgan had teased him about having a hard time making friends yesterday, the young man chuckled to himself before finishing off his drink of black gold and ordering one to go...

Meanwhile, down the street the young woman turned the corner and put her hands into the pockets of her pea coat. She paused in the middle of the sidewalk and drew a business card out of her pocket. Rachel smiled down at the scrawl of a cell phone number under the printed words: Dr. Spencer Reid of the Behavioral Analyst Unit, Quantico, VA. The sudden, shrill ring of her cell phone nearly caused her to jump out of her skin. The number on the screen flashed: Unknown before ringing again. The woman sighed and flipped open the annoying contraption, "...Rachel Liddell." She grumbled into the speaker.

"Hello, Agent Liddell."

"Oh, morning Jai." Rachel said, trying to make her voice sound more chipper. The man on the other end of the phone wasn't buying the false cheer, "Did you not get your tea fix this morning?" He teased lightly.

"The fix isn't the problem... why are you calling me?"

"We have a new mission for you."

"What about?"

"The man you met in the coffee shop... one Special Agent Dr. Spencer Reid of the BAU."

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><p><strong>AN: Thanks for reading... sorry I'm a day late. This little drabble just popped into my head and I had to write it down. Rachel will be one of the two main female OCs that appear in the Hand of Fate series, which I'm working on! :) Let me know what you think, constructive criticism is appreciated but flames and put downs will be ignored! <strong>


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